(1) "Employee" means an individual who is an "employee" for
purposes of federal income tax withholding, as defined in 26 U.S.C.
§3401;

(2) "Employer" means the person or entity for whom an
individual performs or performed any service of whatever nature and
who has control of the payment of the individual's wages for
performance of the service or services, as defined in 26 U.S.C.
§3401;

(3) "Independent Contractor" means an individual who is not an
employee of the employer and who receives compensation or executes
a contract for services performed for that employer. Independent
contractor does not include a direct seller as defined in 26 U. S.
C. §3508(b)(2).

(4) An individual is considered a "new hire" on the first day
in which that individual performs services for remuneration and on
which an employer begins to withhold amounts for income tax
purposes.

(b) Except as provided in subsections (c) and (d) of this
section, all employers doing business in the state shall report to
the Bureau for Child Support enforcement:

(1) The hiring of any person who resides or works in this
state to whom the employer anticipates paying earnings;

(2) The rehiring or return to work of any employee or
independent contractor who resides or works in this state; and

(3) The contracting for services in the state with an independent contractor when payment for the services is $2500 or
more. Payment for the services shall be reported within fourteen
days of the earlier of first making payments that in the aggregate
equal or exceed $2500 in any year or contracts with an independent
contractor providing for payments that in the aggregate equal or
exceed $2500 in any year.

(c) Employers are not required to report the hiring, rehiring
or return to work of any person who is an employee or independent
contractor of a federal or state agency performing intelligence or
counterintelligence functions if the head of the agency has
determined that reporting could endanger the safety of the employee
or independent contractor or compromise an ongoing investigation or
intelligence mission.

(d) An employer that has employees or independent contractors
in states other than this state and that transmits reports
magnetically or electronically is not required to report to the
Bureau for Child Support enforcement the hiring, rehiring or return
to work of any employee or independent contractor if the employer
has filed with the secretary of the federal department of health
and human services, as required by 42 U.S.C. §653A, a written
designation of another state in which it has employees or
independent contractors as the reporting state.

(e) Employers shall report by mailing the required information
to the Bureau for Child Support enforcement or may transmit the
information through another means if approved in writing by the
Bureau for Child Support enforcement prior to the transmittal. The
report shall include the employee's or independent contractor's name, address and social security number, start date, the
employer's name and address, any different address of the payroll
office and the employer's federal tax identification number. The
employer may report other information, such as date of birth or
income information, if desired.

(f) Employers shall submit a report within fourteen days of
the date of the hiring, rehiring or return to work of the employee
or independent contractor. However, if the employer transmits the
reports magnetically or electronically by two monthly submissions,
the reports shall be submitted not less than twelve days nor more
than sixteen days apart.

(g) An employer shall provide to the Bureau for Child Support
enforcement, upon its written request, information regarding an
obligor's employment, wages or salary, medical insurance, start
date and location of employment.

(h) Any employer who fails to report in accordance with the
provisions of this section shall be assessed a civil penalty of no
more than $25 per failure. If the failure to report is the result
of a conspiracy between the employer and the employee or
independent contractor not to supply the required report or to
supply a false or incomplete report, the employer shall be assessed
a civil penalty of no more than $500.

(i) Employers required to report under this section may assess
each employee or independent contractor reported $1 for the
administrative costs of reporting.

(j) Uses for the new hire information include, but are not
limited to, the following:

(1) The state directory of new hires shall furnish the
information to the national directory of new hires;

(2) The Bureau for Child Support enforcement shall use
information received pursuant to this section to locate individuals
for purposes of establishing paternity and of establishing,
modifying and enforcing child support obligations and may disclose
the information to any agent of the agency that is under contract
with the bureau to carry out those purposes;

(3) State agencies responsible for administering a program
specified in 42 U.S.C. §1320b-7(b) shall have access to information
reported by employers for purposes of verifying eligibility for the
program; and

(4) The Bureau of Employment Programs and the Workers'
Compensation Commission shall have access to information reported
by employers for purposes of administering employment security and
Workers' Compensation Programs.
Note: WV Code updated with legislation passed through the 2015 Regular Session
The WV Code Online is an unofficial copy of the annotated WV Code, provided as a convenience. It has NOT been edited for publication, and is not in any way official or authoritative.